Kenya OLKARIA V Geothermal Power Development Project - Earthing Cable and Conductor Supply

Project Information:

Owner: Kenya Electricity Generating Company. (KenGen)

Delivery Date: 2018.10

What We Supplied:

Annealed Copper Wires

PVC Insulated Earthing Cable

Project News:

Location

Olkaria Geothermal Project is situated within Hell’s Gate National Park 120KM from Nairobi and neighbours horticultural farms that produce some of the inest flowers in the world. The project is also adjacent to Lake Naivasha, which is a fresh water lake in the Kenya ift and a Ramsar site.

Geothermal Phenomenon

Geothermal energy is the natural heat stored within the earth’s crust. The energy is manifested on the earth’s surface in the form of fumaroles, hot springs and hot-altered grounds. To extract this energy, wells are drilled to tap steam and water at high temperatures (250-350oC) and pressures (600-1200 PSI) at depths of 1-3KM. For electricity generation, the steam is piped to a turbine, which rotates a generator to produce electrical energy.

Geothermal Development in Kenya

Exploration for geothermal resources in Kenya started in 1950’s and gained momentum in the 1960’s, when two wells were drilled at Olkaria. From 1967, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in collaboration with the Kenya Government and the then East African Power and Lighting Company Ltd., conducted geological and geophysical surveys in the area between Lake Bogoria and Olkaria. The studies identified Olkaria as the most prospective area leading to the construction of the first geothermal power station between 1981 and 1984.

The geothermal system at Olkaria consists of a two-phase reservoir that is hosted within 0.9-1.65 million-year old fractured trachyte and rhyolite rocks at depths of between 600M and 3000M. At the Olkaria East, Olkaria Domes field and Olkaria North East Geothermal fields, wells with a nominal diameter of 8 inches are drilled into the reservoir and the upper 700M-1200M cased off to avoid cold fluid inflow into the bore. The wells produce 75% water and 25% steam. Separation of steam is done using cyclone separators from where dry steam is piped to the powerhouse and separated water injected back into the reservoir.